I Still Love Him
by Dakumisutoresu
Summary: I shouldn't have done it ... I shouldn't have listened ... I should've stayed ... I wish that I could just take it all back ... To go back ... Away from this cage, away from this life, away from HIM ... But, could HE ever forgive me for my sins?


**Disclaimer:** **I don't own anything related to Sailor Moon, or its characters. All rights go to Naoko Takeuchi.**

 **AN:** **Merry Xmas to my favorite cool kitty, Dia! *blows kiss* I hope that you like this gift as much as the previous one. Thank you for always being a listening ear and my friend, even though I probably drive you nuts with some of my nonsense. *laughs* You are the yin to my yang, the rain to my thunder, the blue to my purple, but most of all, you're the kitty to my bunny. I love ya a bunch, and I'm not sure there's enough words to express how truly great you are. Anyway, don't forget to keep your head up and beware of your endless fan base. *dying of laughter* And to keep twerking! *evil smirk***

 **XOXO,**

 **Your Sweet Bunny**

How did my life get to _here_?

Where did I go wrong?

Why didn't I stay where I was?

Why was I so blind and stupid to what was in front of me?

And behind the pretense of being a good wife to this man, pfft!

A man who doesn't even value me more than arm candy to flaunt in front of his rich friends and family!

If only I knew then what I know now – I'd never have agreed to his offer.

I wish that I could just break away from his hold, but I'm afraid that it'll all end badly for me if I do.

Oh, how stupid was I to believe the lies back then about Seiya.

Seiya would have never treated me the way that Mamoru currently does.

He'd cherish me and never would even think of raising a hand to my face in a fit of anger!

Yet, I let go of him … walked away from my life with him … the life we could have had together if I hadn't been so stupidly gullible and listened to all the lies Mamoru had told me about him … only for me to be trapped inside this luxurious mansion that is nothing more than a gilded cage meant to keep me in as his personal servant …

And I want out of it!

I want to go back to when I was in Seiya's arms, with nothing but our love that always filled me with such warmth.

I shouldn't have been impatient about his return.

I should have _believed_ in him.

I should have waited a bit longer, but …

I was just so lonely and insecure about his time away from me that I was willing to believe anything that pointed to him being unfaithful to me.

And now, he probably hates me for turning my back on him …

"Why was I so stupid?" I whispered to myself. I brought my glass of wine up to my lips for a sip, but instantly tensed up when an unwelcome hand found itself on top of mine.

"You look so beautiful tonight, my dear, " Mamoru breathed huskily, his dark eyes peering at me with a mixture of lust and contempt.

I forced a smile. "You look quite handsome yourself tonight, " I took another swig from my glass, hoping the sting down my throat would drown out the feeling of hopeless making a home inside my chest.

Mamoru smiled at me, revealing his unnaturally perfect teeth that any other gal would fall for hopelessly based on their pearliness inspite of the monster behind them.

"But everything pales in comparison to _your_ beauty, my love, with your golden hair …" he reached over to finger the loose strands around my neck with hunger still lingering within that dark gaze of his.

"… the two beautiful gems that are your eyes … your lips are as soft as the finest silks that I've ever touch … and your body …" he trailed off to openly leer at my body, not even bothering to appear as 'sophisticated' and 'gentlemanly' as he claimed to be to many other people inside his circle.

He leaned in closer to me after admiring my body one last time, to whisper in my ear something that made me shudder in disgust, "Your body I can't wait to have soon enough. It'll be a time that you'll never forget. **That** I'm sure of."

I could not help but feel the urge to run away from this. To get away and find someplace to cleanse myself of this _vile_ man's essence, even though I've never allowed him to touch me in _that_ way – I still feel so _dirty_ whenever I'm around him.

 _If I'd stayed with Seiya, I would not be stuck in this gilded cage of mine where I have to pretend that I'm in love with a man who I can't stand. He and I would be happily married by now and living in our house with our children, just happy and enjoying our life together._

My heart sank a bit at that thought as my mind started to fill with images of all the children that Seiya and I could've had, how our house would look, of him coming home from work and sweeping me up into his arms to spin me around with a kiss like he used to, and ...

"I know that look, Usako, and you better fix it right now before I do so myself, " the very voice from the man, whom I'd give anything to get away from and be back in Seiya's arms at this exact moment, was cold water to my brilliant daydream.

I flicked my gaze to meet his defiantly. "You wouldn't do that in front of all your rich society friends, would you?" I breathed a challenge to him, knowing very well that he wouldn't want to tarnish his precious reputation that he's worked so hard to uphold amongst his peers.

His reaction spoke volumes to my words without him saying anything. If it was possible, his glare would have set me ablaze with the amount of hatred and anger in the depths of those cobalt blues.

I was proud of myself for getting to him like that, threatening his so-called 'integrity' that everyone admires so much about him. I allowed to do an internal mini dance at the hostile aura exceeding from him at that moment.

 _Now you know how I've felt for the past few years!_

I reached for my glass to take another sip from it, relishing in my temporary victory over my so-called 'fiancé' (I **refuse** to call him that personally, even in public from how much of a monster he is!), but found myself being grabbed and almost yanked right out of my seat by Mamoru.

"Don't you ever, and I mean _ **ever**_ speak to me like that ever again. You should know very well what I'm capable of doing, especially when it comes to that pretty boy of yours. Catch my drift?" he seethed at me through clenched teeth, giving me a small shake to get his point across.

I nodded, refusing to look into his eyes as I tried my best not to wince beneath his touch from how hard he was gripping me – his nails digging right into my skin.

A sickening smirk spread across his face at this. "Good …" he cooed, letting go of me to place a hand on top of my left one in a 'loving' gesture. "But you should know better than to think he's waited all this time for you. Why would he wait for _you_ when you broke his heart by choosing _me_? You'll never have a life with him after what you done to him years ago. Your delusions are just those, delusions."

It felt as if the rug had been pulled from right underneath of me at his words. My heart stopped cold for a moment in grievance from being reminded of its other half and my betrayal to him years ago.

My teeth found themselves buried into my bottom lip to stifle the sobs that wanted to wrench themselves from deep inside my throat. I could feel the burning sensation of tears building up within my ears, threatening to ruin the makeup job that my handmaid, Luna, had done for me earlier.

 _You know that he's right. How could you be so stupid as to believe in the possibility of being able to waltz back into Seiya's arms after so many years apart? And don't forget how you took his heart and tore it in two for Mamoru because you were young and dumb enough to believe the stories he fed you about him. You should've had more faith in your love for Seiya, then you wouldn't be in this predicament! You made your bed and now have to lay in it after what you've done to Seiya!_

That thought, along with his words, made me feel as if I were punched in the stomach right at that moment. A feeling of heartbreak and sorrow overwhelmed my senses in the form of a tightening inside my chest and trembling hands as I raised my glass back up to my lips. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, wanting so desperately to spew from their dam and create a river to wash away these past few years of sorrow that's been plaguing me since I fell right into Mamoru's trap.

Mamoru smiled smugly at me, knowing that he hit a nerve with his statement. He grabbed his own glass full of red wine and gloated between sips, "You should know already that no one would want a used up wench like yourself. Without me, you'd be a penniless whore living with that gutter rat of a musician in the middle of nowhere."

I glared at him, feeling my blood boil from hearing him call Seiya _that_ horrible name again.

 _But I know how to even up the score …_

So, sitting my glass down to pour myself some more white wine, I casually shot back at him with just a few words.

"If I'm a whore, then what exactly is your assistant, Rei? Surely not a housewife."

And with that, I sipped away at my third or fourth glass that evening while the volcano erupted beside in the form of him suddenly choking on his wine.

 _Bingo!_

I grabbed a breadstick in front of me, breaking it in half. Then, with a coy smile, I 'offered' it to him.

"Would you like some?" I taunted him and waited for that _exact_ reaction I know he'll have whenever I insult his precious assistant.

His eyes burned with the intensity of molten lava. His breath came out in barely concealed pants that probably would have came out as flames if he were a dragon. Then, finally, he took the breadstick from me and tossed it aside.

"Don't you _dare_ talk about Rei like that! She has a lot more class and education than you could ever had without all that air inside your head!"

 _Air inside my_ _ **head**_ _?!_ _ **Air inside my head?!**_ _This man …!_

Fuming, I opened my mouth to give him a tongue lashing about his 'classy' whore of a assistant when a familiar voice broke in before I could possibly earn myself another beating from Mamoru.

"Hey, Mamoru, Usagi! How are you two tonight?" A dirty blond-haired man dressed in a tux similar to Mamoru's. His arm was wrapped around a pretty brunette with emerald green eyes.

They both look vaguely familiar, but I don't remember from where I've seen them before.

"Ah, Motoki! Nice to see you again!" _Oh, that man who owns all of those shops … Weren't they, like, coffee shops? Or were they pastry shops?_

The gears turned inside my head for a few minutes, trying to figure out _what_ type of business he owned the last time Mamoru had him over to the house but it just wasn't coming to me so … I just did my dutiful job as appearing as Mamoru's lovesick fiancée. (rolling my eyes at hearing myself, even though it wasn't out loud, saying _that_ as if I were some kind of possession or something)

I took the breadstick I had left in my hand and just ate it as delicately as I could to appear as docile and refined like Mamoru wanted me to be whenever his 'friends' were around us.

 _Wouldn't want to embarrass His Majesty, would I?_

I mentally rolled my eyes and indulged in the nice breadsticks that are the only things making this event worthwhile besides the coffee cakes (they really do need more options for food, though because I _refuse_ to eat the horse doors and some other fancy food he ordered earlier. They were all disgusting the last time I've tried them! Never again will I eat them! But that poor duck … it didn't deserve to be slathered all over with that icky goo. _Yuck!_ )

But I got the shock of my life when a gentle voice spoke to me from my right side, "Your dress is quite pretty. Where did you get it from?"

I glanced up and came face-to-face with Motoki's date, her face showing a sense of awe as she fingered the material of my dress thoughtfully.

I flushed, feeling a bit flustered to be speaking with an upper-class woman who has probably been waited on hand and foot for most of her life. I'm basically inadequate to her!

Taking a moment to take another sip from my glass, I wished very much that I was drunk so that this evening would pass by even quickly than it currently is.

"It was a gift from Mamoru, " I answered her, cringing internally at how stupid that sounded to my ears no matter how true it is.

But she didn't seem to mind as she let out a giggle and offered me a hand. "I'm Kino Makoto, but you can call me Mako for short, " she must have noticed my expression from how she was quick to explain more about her surname being unchanged, "I am married to Motoki, but it's better for me to keep my maiden name since Furuhata is a bit of a mouthful, and it'd be too much of a hassle to change my papers for both my restaurant and flower shop, "

I made an 'oh' face, amazed at this woman before me.

 _She owns a flower shop_ _ **and**_ _a restaurant!_

I wish that I could do something like that, but …

I found my gaze flicking over to Mamoru, who was chatting away with Motoki and some other higher society guys on the other side of the room. I felt myself instantly tense up when his eyes met with mine, a warning was clear inside his eyes that told me exactly what he had in mind for me later when we go 'home'. A shudder ran down my spine that I tried to hold in, forgetting where I was at that moment as I flashbacked to nights where he'd beaten me over just simply being inside his office.

I didn't even notice how I was trembling, until Mako took my hands in hers to gain my attention.

"Usagi, are you alright?" she asked, making a point to stroke her thumbs across the tops of my hands in a reassuring gesture.

I gave a shaky nod, but still felt unbalanced by all the images invading my mind of every bruises and black eye that Mamoru has ever placed on my body. I tried to focus on Mako's attempt at calming my nerves, but the memories were still pouring in – feeling more real with each replay of them.

All I heard next wed Mako's voice saying something along the lines of "let's go" before everything became a blur. Faces, objects, and even food was unrecognizable with how fast we seemed to soar through the crowd.

 _Maybe I drunk a bit too much …_

And that seemed even more like a possibility when the familiar scent of sandalwood mixed with a hint of jasmine. A feeling of warmth filled me at what – more like _who_ it reminded me of. My heart sped up in anticipation as I glanced around in search of _him_ because _he_ is the only man I've known to smell so beautifully. I could literally hear my heart beat echoing inside my ears at my excitement at possibly seeing him again.

 _Please let me be right. Please let it be him. Please let it be Seiya. I can't take another disappointment._

My eyes frantically scanned the crowd one last time before I was dragged into the ladies' room by Mako.

She took some time to check each of the stalls before turning her attention back onto me. "Okay, now that we're alone. Are you alright, Usagi?" she questioned me and examined me from head to toe.

I nodded, fiddling with the necklace around my neck subconsciously as my mind tried to piece together why I had smelled the scent of Seiya's cologne earlier.

 _Maybe it's all in my head because I want him here with me so badly. Perhaps I should just do as Luna told me and … let him go …_

Everything inside of me screamed out in pure agony at that thought from how it signified me letting go of him after so many years pining after him. However, a nagging thought came to mind that made me even more depressed than I already am.

 _But didn't you basically give up on him years ago when you decided to leave with Mamoru?_

I shook my head, feeling as if I were stabbed by an imaginary knife before it was twisted inside my wound. Tears threatened to trail down my face with all the built up sadness and misery that I've been keeping in since I left Seiya.

My entire body trembled as I wrapped my arms around myself for comfort. Whimpers spewed from my lips.

"I'm sorry Seiya … I'm so, so sorry … I shouldn't have been so stupid … I should have had more faith … " I gasped out between whimpers.

Another pair of arms wrapped around me. The scent of roses and rain reached my nostrils, signaling that Mako was the one hugging me.

"I don't want to marry him … I want to be as far away from him as possible, and to have my life back … to have my true love back … to have Seiya back, " I sobbed into her chest, not caring that my make-up might be messed up now.

It felt like an hour had passed with me just crying inside Mako's arms, letting out years of pain and sorrow that have been bottled up for the three years of living this life. Then, I finally snapped myself out of it and withdrew myself from her embrace to move over to the sink.

Turning on the sink, I splashed some water upon my face.

Mako peered at me through the mirror, a tender look on her face that resembled a sibling's. "So that's why you've never married Mamoru. You don't love him like that, " she said and leaned against a nearby stall.

I bit my bottom lip and glanced at her through the mirror. I answered her question with a laugh devoid of humor, "I could never love that monster. Ever! I'm just trapped with him."

Brown eyebrows furrowed in mild confusion at my words. "What do you mean by he's a monster? And how are you trapped with him?"

 _I guess it's time to tell someone else besides Luna._

I sighed and turned around to face her. One of my hands came up to brush aside the fringe in my face to reveal the fading bruise there.

A gasp wretched itself from her throat, her hand coming up to cover her mouth. Her green eyes widened in horror at my revelation.

"And that's not all …" I admitted and reached behind me to unzip my dress before turning around to reveal the fading bruises and cuts that littered the porcelain skin there.

I expected her to be like Luna and just be sympathetic about my predicament, offering soothing words to bring up my spirit, but she shocked me when I did turn around.

She had a look of fury upon her face, angry waves radiating off of her. Her hands were clenched into fists, and her teeth gritted against each other. Her eyes burned with the intensity of a thunderstorm; wild and dangerous. But nothing shocked me more than her next few words that had my heart jumping right into my throat in shock.

"I'm. Going. To. _Kill_. Him!"

And with that, she started to storm out the room and had almost made it out if I hadn't placed myself in front of the door.

"No! Don't! You can't do that!" I cried, placing my hands on her chest to hold her back.

"But he laid hands on you! No man should _ever_ lay hands on a woman. _**Ever!**_ " she screamed, still fuming.

"I know, but I deserve it for not staying with Seiya, " I stated and looked down tearfully. A few sniffles escaped me at imagining how his face probably looked when he'd seen all my things gone from our home; disappointment, heartbreak, and anger most likely being the feelings he felt at the time I'm sure.

 _I hate myself for hurting him so much!_

Mako's stance softened at my words. Her face changed from one of anger to one of compassion as she reached for me. Her hands landed on top of my shoulders.

"Why did you leave him?" she finally asked that fateful question that only Luna has ever asked me.

My hands fell down to my sides, clenching into fists as I recalled those days years ago that made mw decide to leave Seiya in spite of what my heart told me at the time.

Taking in a deep breath, I started my story, "Seiya and I were lovers obviously. We had been together since the time we met at one of his gigs. We even were planning out our dream house and having children the last time I've seen him …"

Mako nodded, signaling for me to continue without interruptions.

"Around the time I met Mamoru, Seiya was off traveling with some band as a guest performer while I stayed home to work at this diner nearby. Well, during his travels, he used to send me letters and postcards to let me know where he was but they suddenly stopped around the same time Mamoru popped into my life, and I started to get paranoid after so long of not hearing from him that ..."

I paused to shake my head, hating how so _easily_ I fell for Mamoru's words all based on my own insecurities.

 _I really don't deserve Seiya!_

Mako eyed me worriedly. "And what happened? Did you sleep with Ma – ?"

I shook my head rapidly and cried, "No! No. I could never bring myself to do such a thing to Seiya. I loved him too much to bring someone to our bed like that, or anything."

Her mouth formed into an 'oh', understanding radiating off of her. "So what did happen for you to leave him?"

I bit my lip. "Well, Mamoru was like a listening ear for me about my concerns with Seiya on the road as well as my insecurities about my relationship with him and how I felt not good enough for him. Then he took all of those and used every single one of them against me to get inside my head, and I stupidly fell for all of it – especially when he showed me that one thing."

Mako frowned. "What thing?"

"A picture of Seiya with some woman in a position that wasn't quite friendly. I don't know how he got it, or where he found it but all it took was seeing that and I had taken it as proof as him being unfaithful to me instead of having faith in him. I just left him without even leaving a letter or anything. Oh, I'm such a horrible person."

I couldn't bring myself to look at her now, already imagining the look of disgust and disappointment on her face at me being such a horrible lover.

But she shocked me instead by lifting my face up to look at her, her eyes still shining with compassion and understanding.

"How did you end up engaged to Mamoru?"

I swallowed. "Because he threatened to hurt Seiya if I didn't. However, I've been lucky enough that he loves banging his assistant more than he cares for me and that's why we never got married. But I'm still stupid for listening to him years ago. I found out about everything around the same time we got engaged, but I was too chicken shit to leave him without confronting him. _Ugh!"_

Mako hugged me. "Listen, Usagi. I don't know everything about what you've been through up until tonight entirely, but you aren't stupid nor are you a bad person from what little I know about you. You were just a vulnerable girl lost between what was true and what was false, and Mamoru took advantage of that."

I opened my mouth to protest when the door swung open at the same time a familiar voice screamed angrily, "Out of my way! This is a ladies' room, not a lobby! Don't stand in front of the door."

Mako caught me inside of her arms, glaring at the new arrival with raven hair for shoving me over. "Where are your manners?" she hissed at Rei.

Rei rolled her eyes and adjusted her tight dress. "I do have manners, but they're not worth using on her when she's nothing more than a bimbo with no brains."

"'A bimbo'? I'll show you what a bimbo is, you harlot of a - , " Mako spat at her, moving towards her to most likely throttle her for me but I grabbed her to keep her at my side. Her eyes looked at me, confused as to why I stopped her from defending me even further.

I smiled at her sweetly. "She's not worth it. Her time will come someday, but not now – not like this. Let's just go. Motoki must be looking for you."

Her expression softened as she took in my words. Nodding, she moved to the door.

"Let's go because these heels are killing my feet."

Rei's voice piped up after the sound of her snorting reached our ears, "Why, of course they are. They are tacky and cheap and –."

I don't know what Mako's facial expression was when she turned back towards Rei, but whatever it was – it had her cowering into one of the stalls and fumbling with her purse.

I couldn't help, but feel a hint of mirth at her expense that she's finally met her match.

 _That's what you get for being a bitch!_

Turning away from the hilarious scene of her still fumbling around in the stall, I followed Mako out of the ladies' room.

A radiant smile found its way onto my face for the first time that evening. I was elated to finally have some who I can call a friend since meeting Luna.

 _Maybe I'll invite her over to meet Luna some time. Maybe have some tea and cookies and many other sweets! It'll be fun!_

That thought made me smile even wider that I had at least two people to turn to now. However, that smile was soon wiped off my face when collided with a solid chest.

Blushing at my clumsiness, I stepped back and started to sputter with apologies, "I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there! I was lost inside my thoughts, and I just - ."

The stranger chuckled, which caught my attention at how _similar_ it sounded to _his_. "I see that things haven't changed with you, huh?" he chuckled some more, effectively peaking my curiosity after his statement. "May I have the honor of dancing with you tonight, my lady?"

I don't know what my response was to his question, but all I knew was that my heart stopped and my breath caught inside my throat upon locking eyes with him.

Midnight blue eyes seemingly twinkled with a mixture of mirth and something else that I couldn't make out. A smirk was etched onto his face the entire time he tucked my arm into his and led me onto the dance floor.

I laughed sheepishly as we got into position, one arm around my waist and the other around his neck. "Ummm … are you sure that you want to dance with me? I have two left feet, and I tend to step on my partners' toes, " I admitted to him, shocking myself at how open I was being with this stranger before me.

He gave a nod, and pulled me closer to him. "I'm 100% as sure as I was when I asked you to be my girl years ago … Odango, " he whispered the last part into my ear, sending a shock through my body at his words.

My eyes widened to the size of ostrich eggs. My heart started to pound in a way it hasn't in years as my mind tried to process what I just heard. I didn't even notice my feet following along with his to the music playing around us from how shell-shocked I was at that moment.

 _It can't be him … can it?_

Letting out a breath I didn't know I had held, I uttered out the very name I've been dying to see for years now:

"Seiya?"

My answer came in the form of a smirk from him as he took my one hand in his to guide it over to the mask on his face.

"If you truly wish to know, just take this off, " he cooed, not missing a step during our dance together.

A feeling of uncertainty clashed with the hopefulness that sprang at his words. My palms were sweaty as I started to inch that very piece keeping his identity secret in spite of the whispers my heart was giving that already confirmed my hopes while also bringing to life my fears.

 _If it is Seiya, why would he come to_ _ **me**_ _after my betrayal years ago? Shouldn't he hate me? I broke his heart without even saying a single word to him. I don't deserve him …_

After a moment's hesitation, I finally struck up the courage to remove the mask and felt myself grow faint at the face that stared back at me. My heart cried deep inside my chest in relief that it was indeed _him_ – _**Seiya**_.

The mask dropped from my trembling hand as I tried desperately to gulp down the breath caught inside my throat. At one point I even pinched him and myself to make sure that all of this wasn't a dream – only to find that it was indeed real and it is _Seiya_ standing before me.

 _It truly is_ _ **him**_ _. It isn't a dream!_

"Hmm, I'm glad that you've never stopped dreaming of me after all these years, " he teased half-heartedly, even though I could see inside his eyes a hint of hurt that was most obviously caused by _me_.

 _I truly don't deserve him. Why is he here after all these years? Why_ _ **now**_ _? Why would he come for me, let alone_ _ **want**_ _me after what I did to him?!_

A small whimper reached my ears, before my attention was brought back to reality by Seiya's voice and his hand grazing my cheeks with his usual tenderness.

"Don't cry. I didn't come here to see you cry, " he breathed down to me, using his other hand to caress my back in a soothing gesture. "I will answer all your questions that I can see bubbling inside that pretty head of yours." He gave a small chuckle before his face softened.

"But, please, stop crying …" he whispered, pulling me close in to a loving embrace I've so craved for since the day I realized how terrible my decision was years ago.

"But I don't deserve you. I broke your heart, " I sobbed into his chest, slightly glad that all the make-up was gone from my face so that it didn't smear onto his shirt.

"Odango …" the tone in his voice made my heart stop and my gaze drifted up to his face. I didn't even notice that we had stopped dancing with how transfixed I was by his presence.

He took a moment to press a kiss on my forehead before gazing back down on me. "I forgave you, " he said, sending my blood on a frenzy as my heart jumped started back to life at his words.

 _He_ _ **forgave**_ _me?!_

He nodded and tucked a few strands of hair behind my ear. "Yes, I forgave you, Odango. It took me a little while to do so, but I knew that deep down that you never set out to hurt me …"

I opened my mouth to protest, wanting to tell him so badly that I don't deserve his forgiveness for abandoning years ago and for believing Mamoru without listening to his side of things. However, he didn't allow me a single word as his finger found its place upon my lips.

"I could never fault you, nor could I ever hate you for doing what you thought was best. I don't know what he said to you, let alone what he did to convince you but I know that I had a small hand in putting that thought inside your head somehow even if I didn't intend to, " he paused to let out a sigh, ignoring the looks that we were getting from Mamoru's multiple "friends" recognizing me with this "mystery man" whose arms I'm currently in.

 _Oh the sweet smell of scandal. Whatever shall I do? *snort*_

I ignored the many stares upon us, waiting with bated breath for his next few words.

 _Screw all of them and their judgmental gazes! None of them are friends of mine, so why should I care about them? I've waited_ _ **years**_ _for this moment and I'd be damned to allow them to ruin it!_

"Seiya …?" I called to him, wanting to hear what he had to say.

The cloud that was inside his eyes cleared. He pulled me close to him and caressed down my back, sending a shiver down my spine.

"I want us to be together again, " he started, his eyes softening. "I want us to start over and just go home, to our house, to live out the rest of our days together."

"But I left you and - , " I started, my heart welling up with such love and adoration for this man before me at how forgiving and understanding he was in spite of everything that transpired within the past few years.

"No, Odango. Stop blaming yourself. We're both not perfect; we've both made mistakes before and have forgiven each other many times. Nothing will come between us and our love, not even death could keep me away from you, " he declared, making me want to cry all over again. "I'm sorry that it took me so long to find you, but he kept on moving you guys around and it took going to Taiki before I could find you finally."

My heart warmed at his words as I tried (and failed) to hold in my tears. "Oh, Seiya, I would've waited years for you!" I cried and threw my arms around his neck.

A forlorn look clouded his eyes, taking the breath straight from my lungs when his hold on me loosened. "But you are to marry him, " the small quiver inside his voice sent a knife through my heart. I instantly hated myself for causing him so much pain with all my stupid decisions.

"No, Seiya. I'm not marrying him. I swear that I'm not, " I said, hoping with all my heart that _that_ wouldn't cause him to turn his back on me and leave my life entirely.

"Odango … " Seiya looked into my eyes and reached to tuck more strands of hair away from my face when he suddenly paused.

I was confused and a bit taken aback when his expression turned into one of anger that rivaled Mako's. I reached up a hand to touch his face, trying to figure out what had him reacting like this and got my answer in the form of six words.

"Did he do this to you?"

I turned cold at his words. Finally bringing my hand up to the offending spot on my forehead, I felt my heart stop at the realizing what exactly incited his anger.

"Seiya, please. Calm down. I can explain everything. I just need you to stay calm so that we can go somewhere else and talk, " I sputtered while trying my best to get him calmed down enough not to hunt down and skin Mamoru in front of everyone.

 _We can't be together if he's in jail for murder!_

"What the hell is going on here?!" bellowed Mamoru, pushing his way into the crowd.

Mako appeared shortly after with her husband, looking immensely worried when her eyes locked onto mine. Her eyes brightened a bit while glancing over to Seiya with a hint of confusion.

I mouthed to her "Seiya", and she gave a small nod with a small smirk appearing on her face. However, my moment with my newfound friend was cut off when my oh-so-loving "fiancé" decided to target his ire towards me.

"Usako! What the hell is going on? What is _he_ doing here?" he spat at me. His disgust very evident with how he kept sending Seiya dirty looks as if he were a stray dog or something stuck beneath his shoe that he wanted removed.

 _How dare he?_

I opened my mouth to rip into him, not caring about how it'd make me look since it's not like my "reputation" is going to be untarnished after tonight – but Seiya beat me to the punch.

"Were you the one who did _this_ to her?" he basically growled at Mamoru, turning towards him and pointed at the bruise on my forehead.

Mamoru's eyes didn't so much as flick over to me at hearing that question. He remained his usual impassive self as he shot back at Seiya, "And how am I so sure that _you_ didn't do that to **my** fiancée in order to make _me_ look bad, huh?"

Seiya glared at him. "Cut the crap, Chiba. You know as well as I do that I didn't nor would I ever lay a hand on Odango, not even in a fit of anger."

"Oh, really? Well, then, last I've checked – she was unscathed before she had disappeared to who knows where with Kino so it had to be **you** who put those marks on her beautiful skin!" he stepped closer to us and reached for me with a fake expression of concern. "Usako, why don't you come to me so that I can get the authorities to handle this _intruder_?"

I gave him a look of disgust and moved away to stand behind Seiya. "No way! I've spent years with you and your abusive ways, and I absolutely refuse to allow you to get between Seiya and myself again!" I screamed at him.

"But, Usako, I thought you loved me, " he half-whimpered, giving me a fake look of hurt while his eyes whispered many threats to me, "We can even speed up the wedding just as you wanted. Get married in my family's house with the best wedding planner at your service! Don't throw our love away for something temporary! I've tried making it all work for years, yet you keep _him_ around as your play thing! Am I not good enough for you?"

 _He did not just pull_ _ **that**_ _card! He didn't!_

I could feel Seiya's anger increases by tenfold at Mamoru's words. His hands clenched into fists at his sides as his body started to shake with barely concealed anger.

I reached over to him and took his hand in mine, giving it a squeeze. "You know that I don't care about any of those things, Mamoru, nor have I ever loved you in that way."

"How can you say such a thing like that when all I've done was treated you like the princess that you are? How can you say any of that after all those passionate nights we've had together? Why would you throw away a love like ours for someone not worthy of you?" He continued the sickening act of being the 'wronged' lover who's been so 'devoted' to our 'relationship' for all the years we've been 'together'.

 _He really is full of it now!_

I was reaching for my engagement ring when I noticed the hurt expression on Seiya's face. My heart sank at the sight of it, already knowing what caused that reaction from him. Stepping in front of him, I cupped his face within my hands and pulled him down to me.

"Seiya, don't believe him, " I pleaded, gazing into his eyes in hopes that he could see the undisputed truth within them. "There's only been you, and it'll always only be you. I'd never allow anyone else to touch me like you had."

It only took seconds for the hurt to dissipated form those beautiful depths, turning them back to their original midnight blue in place of the pitch darkness that had stolen their glow temporarily.

His hands came up to lay on top of mine. His eyes stared back into mine with such intensity – I could have sworn that I was puddy in his hands.

"I believe you, " was all he said to me, making my heart warm as he smiled down at me. Then Seiya turned his attention onto Mamoru and moved me aside to face him.

"No matter what you say or do, Chiba, I'm leaving with Odango and we're going to go home – **our** home. So let us pass, " he stared Mamoru down, sizing him up as the electricity crackled between the two.

Mamoru scoffed, "And why exactly would I allow my _fiancée_ to leave with someone like you? Especially when she's promised her life to me. Just look at her finger."

I snorted and slid the cursed thing off my finger before tossing it at him. "Take it! I never wanted it anyway!"

He picked up the ring and gave me another one of those looks to show how 'heartbroken' he was at that exact moment from my decision. "But, Usako, we were planning our life together. How can you throw it all away for him of all people? What does he have that I don't?" Mamoru barked at me, looking as if he were about to cry when I know very well that it would be fake.

I eyed him evenly as I found myself embracing Seiya from the side. "He has a lot of things that money nor you could ever hope to give me, " I breathed, then paused to glance up at Seiya who gazed back at me with the same amount of adoration and love. "His heart is the most beautiful thing that I've ever seen. His eyes are very expressive too, especially when they change color along with his moods. I always know how he feels, even when he doesn't tell me because his eyes always show what's inside of him …"

I leaned closer to Seiya, our foreheads touching. "And how he makes me feel so safe and warm with just his presence is also what makes me love, even with all his flaws and quirks – I still love him. It haunted me for years that I was separated from him for so long, especially with the reason _why_ hanging so heavily on my conscience. But most of all …" I withdrawn myself from Seiya to step closer to Mamoru, glaring at him. "He is more of a man than you could ever be, Mamoru."

One of his eyebrows twitched. His teeth gritted against each other as his hands clenched into fists around, most likely picturing himself wringing my neck like he has quite a few times in the past.

"I can't believe that you're actually doing all of this in front of everyone. Have you no respect, Usako?"

"I used to not to, especially with how I stayed with you for so many years instead of following my heart and staying exactly where I truly belonged. " I glanced over my shoulder at Seiya to flash him a smile. "My home with Seiya, not with you. It's never been nor will it ever be with _you."_

Mamoru's next few words caught my attention with the astounding amount of hatred that dripped like venom.

"You ungrateful whore!" Then a fist was hurling at me.

I closed my eyes, prepared to withstand another one of his famous 'love taps' … but nothing happened.

It felt like an hour had passed before I opened my eyes. A chill ran down my spine when my eyes landed on Seiya's back in front of me. My mouth agape at the sight of him actually holding Mamoru's fist within his grasp at that exact moment. Mamoru stared at him with such hatred that I could have sworn that he was going to swing his other fist to land a punch on him.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Chiba … Didn't you receive proper etiquette classes where you never, _ever_ raise a hand on a lady, even in a fit of rage?" Seiya chided him with a smirk on a face that would have deceived anyone who wasn't me who could see the rage brewing deep within his eyes at that exact moment.

Mamoru sneered, "At least I had enough class not to lie with that harlot like you have!"

Before I could register exactly what Mamoru had said – he was on the floor, holding a hand to his mouth. All you heard was everyone in the crowd gasping and murmuring in a fit of panic from what just occurred.

"You're definitely not a man if you're willing to put your hands on a woman, let alone insult her, " Seiya spat down at him, cracking his knuckles as a subtle challenge to Mamoru to try and insult me once again.

"Mamoru!" cried a woman's voice in panic and concern, which soon turned out to be none other than Rei – who scrambled straight to his side to dab at his bleeding mouth with her handkerchief.

 _Let her take care of him!_

I moved up to Seiya, taking his bruised fist into my hand. "Seiya …" I cooed to him, capturing his attention. "Let's go home."

A smile broke out across Seiya's face at my words. He shrugged off his tux jacket and placed it over my shoulders. Then his arm found its way around my waist.

Our sweet moment, however, was cut short by Mamoru's voice bellowing: "YOU CAN'T LEAVE! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO MARRY ME, NOT THAT BASTARD! HE CAN'T EVEN AFFORD TO GIVE YOU A BIG HOUSE! OH! HE SHALL PAY FOR RUINING MY FACE!"

I glanced down at him. "I don't care that he's not rich. All that matters to me is that he is a good man, and … " my gaze drifted back over to Seiya's, sharing a sweet smile together. I lifted his hand up to place a kiss upon his bruised knuckles. "He is my home."

My heart fluttered in several different directions when he kissed me on the lips, ignoring our 'guests'. I couldn't help melting against him and was close to forgetting everything when he broke the kiss.

"Let's go home, " he whispered to me afterwards, and proceeded to lead me through the crowd. Mamoru's increasingly loud howls of anger falling on deaf ears as we made our way out.

I caught a glimpse of Motoki and Mako on our way pass; Motoki looking down at friend, shaking his head in shame at seeing his true colors while Mako gazed over at me with a nod of approval.

I could feel the warmth enveloping my insides at being so near to Seiya after so many years, and how we were returning home – _**our**_ home as well as a new chapter of the book about our love.


End file.
